- Russia: Lab worker dies of suspected plague as 200 enter medical observation
Source: NBC News
“The death of a worker at an anti-plague laboratory in Russia has prompted officials to put at least one hospital facility under quarantine and nearly 200 people reportedly under medical observation as of Monday. The female staffer at the Irkutsk Anti-Plague Institute of Siberia and the Far East died from a ‘pneumonia of undetermined’ origin last week, according to the regional governor, Igor Kobsev. He said no ‘microorganisms linked to the employee’s professional activities were detected’ in her body, and that there had been ‘no new cases’ of illness among other employees of the lab. … Russian media cited officials saying that nearly 200 people who had been in contact with the woman had been placed under precautionary medical observation.” (10/05/26)
- SCOTUS Rejects Roy Moore’s Push to Restore $8.2 Million Defamation Verdict
Source: US News & World Report
“The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday rejected Roy Moore’s push to restore an $8.2 million defamation verdict over a 2017 Senate race ad funded by a Democratic-aligned super PAC. Justices declined to hear Moore’s appeal of a lower court decision that vacated the large verdict. The outcome keeps in place the decision by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that erased a jury’s decision that Moore had been defamed by the ad. It was a victory for Senate Majority PAC, which funded the ad, and argued it was truthful. … Leigh Corfman said Moore inappropriately touched her in 1979 when she was 14 and he was a 32-year-old assistant district attorney. Moore denied the accusation. Other women said Moore dated them, or asked them out on dates, when they were older teens.” (10/05/26)
- Pakistan: Imran Khan supporters march to demand his release after talks failed
Source: ABC News
“More than 5,000 supporters of imprisoned former Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan began a dayslong march toward Islamabad on Sunday to demand his release, after talks between the government and the opposition fell through. The looming showdown threatens to deepen Pakistan’s political uncertainty at a time when the country is also grappling with a surge in militant attacks. Khan is current Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s main political rival and has been imprisoned since 2023 on corruption and other charges that he and his party say are politically motivated.” (10/05/26)
- Ethiopian regime again demands access to the Red Sea as tensions with neighbors escalate
Source: ABC News
“Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed reiterated on Monday that his landlocked country must have access to the Red Sea, despite neighboring countries saying at a summit Sunday that responsibility for the sea rests with states along its shores and warning of the risk of regional conflict. Ethiopia lost direct access to the Red Sea in 1993 after Eritrea, formerly a region of Ethiopia, became independent. Abiy said access to the Red Sea was critical to Ethiopia’s ‘civilization’ and that he would work to ensure the country has a port. … Ethiopia’s relations with its regional neighbors have deteriorated in recent months. The country also faces renewed war with separatist rebels in the northern Tigray region.” (10/05/26)
- US regime publicly confesses to four more maritime murders
Source: CBS News
“The U.S. military said it attacked a boat suspected of being used to smuggle drugs in the Caribbean Sea on Sunday, [murdering] four people, as the Trump administration continues its yearlong campaign against alleged traffickers in Latin America. The latest attack brings the number of people who have been [murdered] in boat strikes by the U.S. military to at least 235 in 70 strikes since the administration began targeting those it calls ‘narcoterrorists’ in September 2025.” (10/05/26)
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/us-strike-alleged-drug-smuggling-boat-caribbean-4-dead-southcom/
- Reports: Flydubai co-pilot planned to crash plane into Tel Aviv airport or building
Source: BBC News [UK state media]
“The co-pilot accused of trying to hijack a flydubai plane planned to crash the aircraft into Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport or a tower block in the Israeli city, US and Israeli reports suggest. The Omani national was ‘a lone wolf’ extremist, according to the reports. The United Arab Emirates’ attorney-general has said the co-pilot attempted to carry out ‘a terrorist act’ on flight FZ1073 from Dubai to Tel Aviv last Wednesday. He attacked and wounded the captain with the emergency crash axe kept in the cockpit before being overpowered by passengers. Another crew travelling on the plane was able to land it in Saudi Arabia. Israel’s prime minister has said the co-pilot underwent ‘Islamist radical indoctrination’ and the captain, passengers and a second crew prevented ‘a 9/11 disaster’.” (10/05/26)
- France: Up to 500 schools closed amid protests
Source: United Press International
“Authorities in France were forced to close as many as 500 high schools across the country as protests by thousands of students over the state of the education system extended into a third week. Education Minister Édouard Geffray announced Sunday that the schools would not reopen after the weekend with classes at 400 to 500 partially or completely canceled because of security that did not meet the levels required. Accusing left wing extremists of exploiting the dispute, Geffray said 78 staff had been injured and 24 schools ‘burned or ransacked’ since the protests, which he said were unprecedented, erupted Sept. 21 in low-income districts of Paris’ southeastern suburbs.” (10/05/26)
- Saudi-backed Yemeni forces expel Houthis from several areas around key strait
Source: SFGate
“Forces of the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen have recaptured several key areas around Bab el-Mandeb Strait from Iran-backed Houthi rebels, Yemeni officials said Monday. The officials said forces allied with the internationally recognized government have retaken the crucial town of Dhubab just north of the strait. They also captured the towns of Bab and Hadeid, said the officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to reporters. Witnesses said they saw government tanks and forces entering the towns. The government push came as part of a major offensive launched early Monday under air cover by a Saudi military coalition. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that it was expected that the Saudi-backed government in Yemen would hit back at the rebels to reclaim territory.” (10/05/26)
- Dennis Hastert, 1942-2026
Source: USA Today
“Former U.S. House speaker Dennis Hastert is dead at 84. Hastert died at his home in Illinois over the weekend due to natural causes, Kendall County Coroner Jacquie Purcell told USA TODAY Oct. 5. As the 59th Speaker of the House, the former lawmaker from Illinois’ 14th congressional districtwas the longest serving Republican speaker in history. … Hastert served 13 of a 15 month prison sentence in connection to a bank fraud conviction linked to his effort to buy the silence of a former student he sexually abused during his days as a high school wrestling coach in Illinois, USA TODAY previously reported.” (10/05/26)
- Japan: Arrest of US Marine for murder reignites protests in Okinawa
Source: BBC News [UK state media]
“For many Okinawa locals, the arrest of a US soldier [sic] accused of robbing and killing a woman in a hotel room has reignited decades of frustration over crimes involving US military personnel there. ‘Honestly my first reaction was, ‘Not again!” 52-year-old longtime Okinawa resident Ai Sato told the BBC. ‘Nothing has changed since I was a child. How many times are we going to repeat the same thing, create more victims, cause their families to suffer, and ultimately, cause the people of Okinawa to grieve?’ Akemi Oshiro, a 62-year-old Ginowan resident shared similar sentiments. ‘I know we shouldn’t get used to terrible things like this, but because they keep happening, I’ve stopped being surprised’, she told the BBC. Okinawa hosts the largest US military presence in Japan. It is home to several US military bases and tens of thousands of American troops.” (10/05/26)
- UK: Mountbatten-Windsor launches bid to “quash Epstein-affair search warrants
Source: France 24 [French state media]
“Britain’s disgraced former prince, Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, has launched a High Court challenge ‘to quash search warrants’ obtained by police ahead of his arrest earlier this year, the judiciary confirmed Monday. The London court is set to hold a private hearing on Thursday, the judiciary said in a statement, as King Charles III’s brother challenges Thames Valley Police over searches of his former and current homes on royal estates. The force arrested the 66-year-old on his birthday on February 19 on suspicion of misconduct in public office related to his links to late US sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. He was released later that day while remaining under investigation. The ex-prince has denied all wrongdoing.” (10/05/26)
- Appeals court weighs judge’s authority to restore Trump administration funding cuts to Harvard
Source: SFGate
“A federal appeals court heard opposing arguments Monday over whether a judge had the authority to restore billions of dollars in funding that the Trump administration cut from Harvard University. U.S. District Judge Allison Burroughs ruled last year that the cuts amounted to illegal retaliation for Harvard’s rejection of the administration’s demands for changes to Harvard’s governance and policies. The government had tied the move to Harvard’s delays in dealing with antisemitism, but the judge said the university’s federally backed research had little connection to discrimination against Jews. The ruling restored more than $2.6 billion in research funding for the wealthy Ivy League school. Though the money has resumed flowing, a Justice Department attorney told a three-judge panel of the First U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals on Monday that Burroughs lacked the legal power to require the administration to pay it.” (10/05/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/news/article/appeals-court-weighs-judge-s-authority-to-restore-22463416.php
- FBI arrests “Chinese foreign agent” for spying on Taiwan president’s son
Source: Al Jazeera [Qatari state media]
“The FBI has arrested a ‘Chinese foreign agent’ at Los Angeles International Airport accused of spying on the Taiwanese president’s son. Wanying Zhang, also known as Heather, was arrested on Sunday before her planned departure to China, the first assistant US attorney for the Central District of California, Bill Essayli, said in a post on X. Authorities charged Zhang, 34, of Irvine, California, with acting as an unregistered foreign agent. Zhang surveilled Taiwanese President William Lai Ching-te’s son, the FBI said. The agency did not directly name Zhang’s alleged target, but later shared a news article identifying him as Lai Ting-yu.” (10/05/26)
- Annual Fundraiser — Update and Name Change
THANK YOU to supporter JS and subscribing contributors T and SH! Their donations over the weekend, totaling $105, bring our annual fundraiser total (as of 5am on Monday, October 5) to $115!
Our goal is $5,503 — with supporter GL’s “matching funds” pledge, we only have to raise $2,751.50 from our other 5,000 or so readers … which seems like an easy ask, but always seems to take a while.
Remember, once we’ve reached our goal, I stop talking about money ENTIRELY for the rest of the year and MOSTLY for the first nine months of NEXT year. So please, support the freedom movement’s daily newspaper at:
https://news.rationalreview.com/support-rrnd
About that name change:
I’ve always called this event our “year-end fundraiser,” because it takes place in the fourth quarter of the year. But “annual fundraiser” seems more appropriate. This is the ONLY time each year when we set a fundraising goal and I start bugging you to help us reach it. That seems worth emphasizing.
We’re $2,636.50 short at the moment. You can change that. Please do.
https://news.rationalreview.com/support-rrnd
Have a great day!
Yours in liberty,
Tom Knapp
Publisher
Rational Review News Digest / Freedom News Daily - Brazil: Presidential election goes to run-off as Bolsonaro wins first round
Source: BBC News [UK state media]
“The right-wing Flávio Bolsonaro has won the first round of Brazil’s presidential election, beating the incumbent left-wing President Lula da Silva. But he did not obtain more than 50% of the votes required to win outright. There will be a run-off vote between these two candidates on 25 October. Flávio Bolsonaro is the son of the former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro, who is serving a 27-year prison sentence for masterminding a failed coup attempt after losing the last election. … With 98.81% of the votes counted, Bolsonaro had 47.24% to Lula’s 44.91% of the vote.” (10/05/26)
- More Tankers Hit as Iranian Regime Restates Hormuz Terms
Source: Yahoo! News
“At least two tankers were struck in waters near Oman and Iran over the weekend as Tehran warned it would not fully reopen the Strait of Hormuz until its conditions for ending the war with the United States are met. The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, a British maritime security service, said a crude oil tanker was struck by an unknown projectile Saturday about four nautical miles east of Oman. Another tanker was struck Sunday in the Strait of Hormuz, suffering damage to its engine room, according to UKMTO.” (10/04/26)
https://www.yahoo.com/news/world/articles/more-tankers-hit-iran-restates-222841428.html
- Pentagon pulls B-1 bombers from UK base following alleged terror threat
Source: The Hill
“The Pentagon pulled all 12 B-1 bombers this weekend from the U.K.’s RAF Fairford air base to their home stations in the U.S. weeks after an alleged terror threat against a U.S.-operated post in England. … The withdrawal comes after British authorities arrested six men linked to a suspected attack on the air base that officials said was foiled. The U.K. police have released the suspects on bail, but the investigation into the incident has continued.” (10/04/26)
https://thehill.com/policy/international/6128663-us-bombers-withdraw-uk-base/
- Spain: Sanchez calls November election amid growing housing protests
Source: CNN
“Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez called a snap election after facing mounting pressure from mass protests over the country’s housing crisis. Sánchez called the early election for November 29 during a televised speech to the nation from the Palace of Moncloa, his official residence in Madrid. … The announcement comes less than 72 hours after Sánchez’s government failed to secure parliamentary backing for two housing-related royal decree laws aimed at easing mounting public pressure over Spain’s housing crisis. … For days hundreds of people have camped out in Madrid’s central Puerta del Sol to protest the housing crisis gripping the country.” (10/05/26)
https://www.cnn.com/2026/10/05/europe/spain-leader-calls-snap-election-intl-hnk
- Russia: Dozens abducted at Moscow Communist Party rally amid anger over Ukraine drone strikes
Source: AOL
“Police in Moscow have detained around 60 people at a rally held by Russia’s Kremlin-friendly Communist Party, according to the organisation. A party statement said the arrests took place as the event was ending on Sunday, with its Moscow branch trying to secure the release of detainees, who were mostly young people. The gathering marked the anniversary of the Kremlin’s 1993 crushing of a parliamentary uprising. Telegram news channel Ostorozhno Novosti said protesters chanted slogans including ‘Freedom for political prisoners,’ ‘For fair elections,’ and ‘Down with the Tsar.’ The rally came as public frustration has been simmering in Russia during the intensifying Ukrainian drone attacks deep inside the country.” (10/04/26)
https://www.aol.com/articles/dozens-arrested-moscow-communist-party-195315000.html
- UK: Regime drops plans to cut jury trials in England and Wales after outcry
Source: The Guardian
“Ministers have scrapped plans that would have slashed the number of jury trials in England and Wales and replaced them with a judge sitting alone. The proposals had sparked a fierce backlash from lawyers, who have welcomed the U-turn. But the victims’ commissioner expressed concern about the abandonment of measures drawn up by the then justice secretary, David Lammy, under Keir Starmer’s government, to tackle the record backlog in the courts. … Legislation would have removed jury trials for defendants who were likely to receive a sentence of up to three years. Ministers have not abandoned judge-only trials altogether, but they will only be for a small number of especially lengthy and technical fraud cases where the judge decides a jury trial is not appropriate.” (10/04/26)
- A Democratic Senate Should Adopt Secret Impeachment Ballots on a Priority Basis
Source: The UnPopulist
by Andy Craig“The Constitution’s ‘indispensable’ remedy for a lawless president has been attempted four times and has never once succeeded. … The problem suggests a fix as simple as it is unglamorous: let the Senate vote on impeachment verdicts by secret ballot. Here is how it would work. On the final question of guilt under each article, senators would vote by secret ballot, with only the totals announced. Each senator’s vote would still be recorded and entered on the Senate Journal, as the Constitution requires. But that portion of the Journal would be sealed, published only after some reasonable length of time, such as 10 or 20 years. History gets the names. The president’s immediate ability to inflict political—or physical—punishment does not.” [editor’s note: Once that “sealing” precedent was established, how long would it be before the public could only know how “their representatives” had voted on ANYTHING until long afterward? – TLK] (10/05/26)
https://www.theunpopulist.net/p/a-democratic-senate-should-adopt
- Make Them Earn It, Don’t Give It to Them
Source: Town Hall
by Mark Lewis“I’ve been reading that some Republicans, out of frustration, might stay home this year and not vote. Big mistake. Folks, we live in a very imperfect world. I doubt anybody on this earth agrees with anybody else 100 percent of the time. We make a huge blunder if we expect even near-perfection, especially from politicians. No, Donald Trump hasn’t done everything we wanted him to do. But he has done a lot of good things. But because Trump hasn’t been able to accomplish everything we want, and the Republican Congress has been aggravating, does that mean we want to turn the country back over to communist barbarians?” (10/05/26)
https://townhall.com/columnists/marklewis/2026/10/05/make-them-earn-it-dont-give-it-to-them-n2684085
- Fewer Babies, Fresh Answers
Source: Adam Smith Institute
by Madsen Pirie“The birth rate is falling across the developed world. In England and Wales it now sits around 1.4 children per woman, well below the 2.1 needed to keep a population stable. Japan, Italy and South Korea are further down the same road. The usual response is gloom. Fewer workers, more pensioners, and a future of rising taxes and failing services. The gloom is overdone. The problems are real, but so are the solutions, and many of them are already arriving.” (10/05/26)
- Zionism OBVIOUSLY A Racist Ideology
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone“On Sunday the UK Greens adopted a motion asserting that Zionism is a form of racism, defining the ideology as ‘an ethnonationalist political project’. Green Party leader Zack Polanski, who is Jewish, was immediately banned by the Israeli government from entering the nation after the motion was passed. As you might expect, Israel apologists are presently churning out hasbara trying to spin the new Green Party policy as an evil attack on Jews and arguing that Zionism is actually a perfectly lovely and normal thing that we should all support. ‘Zionism is just the belief that Jews deserve a homeland and self-determination,’ they’ll claim, often adding a suggestion that the real racists are those who would oppose such a reasonable position.” (10/05/26)
https://caitlinjohnstone.com.au/2026/10/05/zionism-is-obviously-a-racist-ideology/
- Jones Act waiver period disproves China fearmongering, shows benefits of reform
Source: The Hill
by Jonahan Helton“Defenders of the federal maritime law known as the Jones Act contend that the threat of Chinese expansion is a reason to keep its protectionist regulations in place. If the Jones Act were pared back, they say, Chinese vessels would take over U.S. shipping lanes. Unfortunately for them, this argument does not hold water — in fact, recent events strongly indicate that reforming the Jones Act could benefit Americans across the country. The 1920 law mandates that ships delivering goods from one U.S. point to another be flagged and built in the U.S. and mostly owned and crewed by Americans. But the law has been suspended for shipments of fuel and fertilizer since March 17. … The results of the waiver period so far show clearly that U.S. companies would buy more domestic products if Jones Act supply restrictions weren’t in the way.” (10/05/26)
https://thehill.com/opinion/finance/6118593-jones-act-reform-benefits/
- Caretakers or Conquerers?
Source: Brownstone Institute
by Joel Salatin“When President Trump’s Republican acolytes primaried long-time US Congressman Thomas Massie (R-KY) and defeated him in the most expensive Congressional primary race in history (about $30 million) in May, pundits offered their assumptions and agendas. The Trumpites said he wasn’t nice playing their ball game (I’m being diplomatic) and therefore deserved to be sidelined. They couldn’t abide a rogue Republican, even if he did vote with the president 92 percent of the time. Opposing the war in Iran was over the top. … I believe the American country-boy mystique is wrapped up in conquering things. Trump enjoys overwhelming support in rural America. Country folks like to fight. Hatfields and McCoys. President Obama and his wife Michelle planted a White House garden – nonchemical, by the way; fertilized with compost. President Trump hosts fighting on the lawn.” (10/05/26)
- Why Are the Homeless So Young?
Source: Independent Institute
by Christopher J Calton“In 1958, most homeless people in Chicago were at least 50 years old, and only around 10 percent were under 35. Three decades later, nearly 40 percent of Chicago’s homeless were younger than 35 years old, and other cities showed similar patterns. The falling age of the homeless was alarming in the 1980s, but according to federal data, the problem is even worse now. Today, an astonishing 47 percent of homeless persons are under 35, and more than one-quarter are younger than 25. Substance abuse, on the other hand, may help explain part of the shift.” (10/05/26)
https://www.independent.org/article/2026/10/05/why-homeless-so-young/
- Don’t Bite
Source: Underthrow
by Max Borders“When Barack Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2009, most people looked at each other wondering what they had missed. Now, in 2026, two Nobel laureates in economics have produced an argument that ought to make us stroke our chins. Writing in Evonomics, George Akerlof and Robert Shiller argue for more regulation. Indeed, they write that they ‘wrote it for government officials, who undertake the usually thankless task of regulating business.’ They argue that markets create powerful incentives to take advantage of people—not necessarily because entrepreneurs are evil, but because businesspeople tend to exploit opportunities to profit from human weakness.” (10/05/26)
- The Cornell Seven and the Sensate-Pornographic Society
Source: American Greatness
by Stephen Soukup“At this point, no one can say anything for certain about the ‘Cornell Seven’ case, except that bad things happened and no one will receive justice. The first of these is painfully obvious. Even if everything was consensual and legal, the young woman (Jane Doe) put herself in an extremely foolish and dangerous position, while the boys (certainly not men, by any stretch of the imagination) behaved monstrously, participating in or facilitating her sexual exploitation. The second should be just as obvious, although nearly all observers will pretend otherwise. Like everything else in our politically obsessed society, this case of sexual exploitation has morphed into a case of political exploitation, with the usual suspects lining up on both sides of the issue, using it to score ideological points and make partisan gains.” (10/05/26)
https://amgreatness.com/2026/10/05/the-cornell-seven-and-the-sensate-pornographic-society/
- Was Frederick Douglass a free speech absolutist? Part 2
Source: Expression
by Jacob Mchangama“He called press freedom ‘the Palladium of Liberty.’ But when did it become more of a curse than a blessing? What were an editor’s ethical duties? Should libels be met with speech or the law?” (10/05/26)
https://expression.fire.org/p/was-frederick-douglass-a-free-speech-79c
- Bad Move
Source: Common Sense
by Paul Jacob“What is Mr. Trump thinking? It’s simply the wrong way to govern: Using the public purse to broadcast pro-yourself messages to the people. And is there any constituency — outside of Mr. Trump — for these television spots? One that would override the stench from misusing public resources in broad daylight on Fifth Avenue? The White House calls these ads public service announcements. The whole thing smacks of leader-worship. Plus, the messages are purely political. The timing seems awfully vote-solicitous: ‘Together we will defeat.'” (10/05/26)
- Optimum Population: Average, total, or …
Source: David Friedman’s Substack
by David Friedman“Utility functions are observed in the form of choices. If negative utility is the level at which existence is worse than nonexistence, zero utility is the level below which a person, given the choice, would prefer not to exist. People have that choice; for many of us, suicide is not only possible but inexpensive: All it costs is our life. Following the principle of consumer sovereignty to its somewhat grisly conclusion, it seems natural to say that if a person, having access to means for killing himself, refrains from doing so, it must be because his utility for living is greater than for dying. Making allowance for costs such as pain, injury to others, and the price of the bullet, we have a definition of zero utility: A person’s utility is zero when he is indifferent between committing and not committing a costless suicide.” (10/05/26)
https://daviddfriedman.substack.com/p/optimum-population-average-total
- The Federal Government Ran Up a $2 Trillion Deficit in 2026
Source: Reason
by JD Tuccille“Fiscal year 2026 ended last week, and while official figures aren’t out yet, it looks like the federal government spent $2 trillion more than it took in. That’s not quite a record—in dollar terms, the federal government ran a bigger deficit in 2020 when the feds showered money on the country in hopes of offsetting COVID-19 lockdowns (fueling inflation in the process), and the deficit was a bigger share of GDP both that year and during the Great Recession. But given the federal government hasn’t balanced its books in 25 years, a $2 trillion deficit adds to already staggering national debt and looming disaster.” (10/05/26)
https://reason.com/2026/10/05/the-federal-government-ran-up-a-2-trillion-deficit-in-2026/
- Education, Vouchers, and School Choice
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Laurence M Vance“Most cases of choice involve goods that are much more distinguishable than almost identical bottles of ketchup: for example, cars, houses, furniture, shoes, clothes, pets. But choice is not limited to just goods. Sometimes, people choose between and among experiences: for example, cruises, concerts, sporting events, museums, zoos, and amusement parks. The same is true when it comes to the provision of services: for example, pest control, dentistry, hair styling, auto repair, landscaping, tanning. Although every service imaginable is or has been provided by the free market, governments at every level are united in their belief that there is one service that government at some level should provide, fund, regulate, control, and/or mandate that every child should receive: education.” (10/05/26)
https://www.fff.org/explore-freedom/article/education-vouchers-and-school-choice/
- Doctor, Patient, and AI
Source: Law & Liberty
by Brent Orrell‘AI in health care promises greater efficiency, but only if it balances the objective knowledge of the physician with the subjective wisdom of the patient.” (10/05/26)
- Cost of War Comes Due Before the Ballot
Source: Common Dreams
by Timothy Hopper“On September 29, the Energy Department said it would make up to 40 million barrels of crude from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve available through an exchange intended to stabilize oil supply. The move was a reminder of something easy to miss in debates over the Iran war: Its costs do not stay on the battlefield. American households can start paying them well before voters get a chance to judge the decisions behind them. War is usually pictured through missiles, airstrikes, casualties, and ruined cities. Yet some of the burden can surface thousands of miles from the fighting—in gas prices, shipping costs, grocery bills, and whatever is left in a family’s bank account at the end of the month. The war with Iran has made that connection hard to ignore. When oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz are disrupted, the shock moves through global energy markets and reaches the United States.” (10/05/26)
- Socializing Safety
Source: Law & Liberty
by Marc A Levin“The state should try to give citizens an ‘equal opportunity’ to live in neighborhoods free of violent crime.” (10/05/26)
- Make America Read America
Source: CounterPunch
by Mickey Huff & Steve Macek“The forty-fourth annual Banned Books Week (BBW) takes place October 4 through 10 this year, but given the significant, sustained efforts to restrict what young people can read, Banned Books Week should likely be observed every week. We are living in a time of increased attacks on the free press, free speech, academic freedom, and the rights to read and know. This year’s BBW theme, ‘Let Books Be: Protect the Freedom to Read,’ reflects these concerns.” (10/05/26)
https://www.counterpunch.org/2026/10/05/make-america-read-america/
- One of Ukraine’s winning principles
Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff“A big reason for the rules of war is to prevent a country that’s losing a conflict from unleashing a last-resort wave of attacks on innocent civilians. After its 4 1/2-year war in Ukraine, Russia appears to fit that description, adding one more justification for the 1949 Geneva Conventions – to which Moscow is legally bound. Civilian casualties in Ukraine were up 37% in the first half of 2026 from the same period last year. And, increasingly, the slaughter is in major cities, away from the most contested territory. ‘I … see the nature of this war changing’, said Alexander De Croo, administrator of the United Nations Development Programme, during a visit to the country last month. ‘Civilian infrastructure is being attacked deliberately and relentlessly, day and night,’ he said. ‘Buses. Trains. Bookshops. Supermarkets. The ordinary places where ordinary people live their lives.’ In addition, Russia’s gloves-off tactics appear to come from orders on high.” (10/02/26)
https://www.csmonitor.com/Editorials/the-monitors-view/2026/1002/One-of-Ukraine-s-winning-principles
- How “Never Again” Lost Meaning in Gaza
Source: Antiwar.com
by M Reza Behnam“Looking across the devastated landscape of the Gaza Strip, where surviving generations now carry the permanent physical and psychological scars of war, the ultimate indictment of our era is damning: The world watched the horror unfold in real-time, possessed all the legal, political and institutional mechanisms to stop it, and did nothing. For months, then years, the catastrophe in Gaza tested the fabric of international law, the integrity of global governance and the moral conscience of humanity. From the halls of the United Nations to the high courts of The Hague, what followed was not information failure, but a shameful surrender of political and moral will.” (10/05/26)
https://original.antiwar.com/reza_behnam/2026/10/04/how-never-again-lost-meaning-in-gaza
- Increase in Hormuz oil traffic is papering over a darker reality Increase in Hormuz oil traffic is papering over a darker reality
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Kelley Beaucar Vlahos“Reports that more oil is getting through the Strait of Hormuz have been heralded as a win for the Trump administration, but experts say this kind of happy talk hides the fact that the war remains in a quagmire. As shipping costs rise and Iran continues to attack vessels, world markets — including fuel — will remain in peril for the foreseeable future. In other words, no matter how much narrative-shaping is attempted to alter American perspectives before the midterms, prices for consumers will not come down to so-called pre-war levels in time for any change.” (10/05/26)
- Despite Declaring the Guilt of the Accused, Letitia James Appointed Special Counsel
Source: Jonathan Turley
by Jonathan Turley“‘Seven men drugged and gang raped a 20-year-old woman’. That verdict in the alleged Cornell rape case was delivered by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who has joined a chorus of others in pronouncing the guilt of Cornell students accused of raping a fellow student. Mind you, not a single witness has testified under oath publicly and not a single charge has been brought. However, guilt is now being collectively declared from the usual figures and outlets who have never been late to mob justice. Ocasio-Cortez declared, ‘I want to be clear that the culture of rape, sexual assault, and pedophilia is protected in elite institutions across the United States and including Cornell University in this instance. It has got to stop’. We have been here before.” (10/05/26)
- Yes, Government Seizes 80% Of Your Productivity
Source: Libertarian Institute
by Thomas Eddlem“The title of Jim Ostrowski’s brief and latest book The Government Takes 80% reads at first like a libertarian’s exaggerated fever-dream of government rapacity over the economy. The government takes 80% of the average American’s productivity every year? It sounds ridiculous on its face. But he literally means it, that all levels of government take some 80% of the average person’s income between taxes and regulations in America today. And he demonstrates the estimate as generally true, despite all conventional wisdom to the contrary.” (10/05/26)
https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/yes-government-seizes-80-of-your-productivity
- Hegseth’s Love of War Isn’t Conservative
Source: The American Conservative
by Jack Hunter“War does not seem like a mere necessary evil to Hegseth. I’m not sure he sees even unjust war as evil at all. I think he likes it. Is this conservative? The late conservative sociologist Robert Nisbet didn’t think so.” (10/05/26)
https://www.theamericanconservative.com/conservatives-dont-relish-war/
- Is Political Polling Broken?
Source: Washington Monthly
by Anne Kim“Political polling has had a black eye since at least the 2016 presidential election. That’s when national polls had Hillary Clinton leading Donald Trump by a significant margin all the way up to Election Day. Democrats started measuring the curtains. Unfortunately, the polls massively underestimated the strength of Trump’s support, and Trump went on to win the Electoral College and the White House. More recently, pollsters have suffered embarrassing failures in high-profile contested primaries. … In truth, polls have always been unreliable. Numbers create the illusion of infallibility, but polls are an imperfect gauge of unpredictable behavior.” (10/04/26)
https://washingtonmonthly.com/2026/10/04/is-political-polling-broken/
- SCOTUS Power Based on Lie of Its Supremacy
Source: The American Prospect
by Ryan Cooper“Any search for the chief enabler of Donald Trump’s corruption and subversion of American democracy really must lead to one and only one place: the Supreme Court. The reactionary majority, led by Chief Justice John Roberts, has repeatedly bailed Trump out from his many prosecutions, enabled his wildly lawless trampling over the basic appropriations process, and (in what is for my money the worst Court decision in American history, Trump v. U.S.) explicitly immunized him from being prosecuted for breaking, in effect, any law. Yet despite that, many Trump critics still balk at proposals to attack the Court’s power head-on. At a recent conference about liberalism in the 21st century, when asked about Court reform, Bob Bauer, former White House counsel for President Obama, warned that ‘You don’t respond to norm breaking by breaking more norms’.” (10/05/26)
https://prospect.org/2026/10/05/oct-2026-supreme-courts-power-based-on-lie-of-supremacy/
- Places and societies of origin and American politics
Source: The Price of Liberty
by Nathan Barton“[G]overnments constantly grab and keep more and more over us more and more often, and that in turn causes greedy and immoral people to seek power and be worse and worse parasites on us. Today, that means letting a supposed majority of people electing and giving someone incredible power. At least in part, because those people (not just the immigrants) promised them the modern equivalent of bread and circuses. … Bluntly, Americans have done it to ourselves.” (10/04/26)
https://thepriceofliberty.org/2026/10/04/places-and-societies-of-origin-and-american-politics/
- Want To Stop the Iran War? Don’t Pay the Bill
Source: Reason
by Gene Healy“With the power of the purse, Congress can pressure the president to stand down in Iran by doing what it usually does best: nothing. … To date, we’ve spent over $40 billion on the president’s Iran adventure, yet Congress has never passed specific appropriations for any of it. The administration has been paying the bills by tapping into Pentagon funds authorized for other purposes, such as military training and readiness. … Facing ‘an urgent budget shortfall,’ the Trump administration requested Epic Fury funds in June. In July, the House passed a budget resolution incorporating the ask. The supplemental request now sits with the Senate …. doing nothing—simply refusing to pass the supplemental—would be a good start.” (10/02/26)
https://reason.com/2026/10/02/want-to-stop-the-iran-war-dont-pay-the-bill/
- How the Shahed Drone Became the New AK-47
Source: exile in happy valley
by Nicky Reid“In the 21rst century, the modern world has become a Frankenstein empire with a thousand terrible new machines produced per minute as resources dwindle and the emotional wellbeing of entire generations crashes with the bombs. We call this progress, but what it really amounts to is slavery in exchange for convenience. The problem isn’t even really the devices themselves, but rather the fact that human beings seem to take less and less moral inventory with every new device produced. … The end result is a brave new world where life is cheap and oppression is downright affordable. … The only bright side to this strangely convenient dystopia is that with the mass production of quite literally everything, resistance becomes as cheap as oppression.” (10/04/26)
https://exileinhappyvalley.blogspot.com/2026/10/how-shahed-drone-became-new-ak-47.html
- It was never just going to be about keeping kids off social media
Source: Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
by Sarah McLaughlin“‘We shouldn’t accept that this is the end,’ Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy said this week of the UK’s looming under-16 social media ban. ‘This is a staging post to what must be a very active interventionist state, policing and regulating the online space so that people are safe.’ Next March, the initial rollout will begin to keep teens under 16 from using ‘high-risk’ social media apps, and further algorithmic restrictions will later hit those under 18. After that, more restrictions will apparently follow. What new ‘policing and regulating’ powers will officials seek?” (10/02/26)
- The Tyranny of One Man’s Opinion
Source: Antiwar.com
by Andrew P Napolitano“Thomas Cromwell was the Lord Chancellor of England for much of the reign of King Henry VIII. He engineered the convictions and executions of many whom Henry wanted out of the way, including his two predecessors in office — one of whom was St. Thomas More — and even the king’s second wife, Queen Anne. When Cromwell’s son Gregory, who became sickened as he watched his father devolving from counselor to monster, learned that an executioner for the queen had been sent for from France a week before her trial, he asked his father what the purpose of her trial was if the king had preordained the queen’s guilt and prepaid the executioner. Cromwell replied that the king needed a jury to give the appearance of legitimacy to her conviction and prevent the public perception of ‘the tyranny of one man’s opinion.'” (10/02/26)
https://original.antiwar.com/andrew-p-napolitano/2026/10/01/the-tyranny-of-one-mans-opinion/
- Cornell raises an uncomfortable question about consent
Source: Washington Post
by Megan McArdle“There is no question that something terrible happened at a Cornell University fraternity in 2024. The question is what. Was it a brutal gang rape? Or was it something messier and more complicated, a sexual encounter that was unwise but nonetheless consensual? What facts we have are not enough to distinguish between the two possibilities.” (10/04/26)
- In Latest Protests, “Kayak-tivists” Target Home of Chief Justice Roberts in Maine
Source: Jonathan Turley
by Jonathan Turley“There are certain dates that have become a regular feature in American life. In February, the Sandhill Cranes return to the Platte River in Tennessee. In March, the swallows return to San Juan Capistrano…and in October, the protesters have returned to Hupper Island, the summer vacation home of Chief Justice Roberts. The last migratory pattern is more recent and certainly less welcomed. In past years, liberal protesters have descended on the homes of conservative justices to disrupt their lives, shout abuses, and, in one case involving Justice Brett Kavanaugh, seek to kill a member of the Court. Protesters outside the home of Justice Amy Coney Barrett left bloody dolls on the lawn, knowing that she had young children inside. This week, the protesters appeared at the vacation home of Chief Justice John Roberts in Maine.” (10/03/26)
- Behavioral Economics and Human Flourishing: A Neo-Aristotelian Perspective
Source: Freedom and Flourishing
by Edward W Younkins‘Behavioral Economics has emerged over the past seven decades as a significant development in economic thought challenging the idealized assumptions of perfect rationality that have long dominated neoclassical economics. Yet, for all its insights into human cognition and decision-making, the field has generated controversy regarding its normative implications. Should behavioral economists address their findings to public policy makers who could nudge citizens toward supposedly better choices? Or should they address their recommendations to individuals, empowering them to make better decisions for themselves?” (10/04/26)
https://www.freedomandflourishing.com/2026/10/behavioral-economics-and-human.html
- Election 2026 Enters the “Spoiler” Whining Hour
Source: Garrison Center
by Thomas L Knapp“For more than a century, the Republican and Democratic parties have used ballot access laws and debate exclusion criteria to rig elections, making it as difficult and expensive as possible for ‘third party’ and independent candidates to even appear on ballots. Then when Republicans and Democrats lose, or look like they may lose, the whining begins. ‘Why, the nerve! How dare anyone but us seek political office? Those other guys can’t win — we’ve busted our butts to make sure of that! But here they come, ‘stealing’ our votes and ‘spoiling’ the rightful outcomes! There oughta be a law! Oh, wait, there is … why isn’t it working?'” (10/02/26)
- The Daily, 10/05/26
Source: New York Times
“Midterm Surprise: Democrats Are Surging in Red America.” (10/05/26)
- Ron Paul Liberty Report, 10/05/26
Source: Ron Paul Liberty Report
“Surprise! The Military Budget Is Much Higher Than You Think!” (10/05/26)
- TechTank, season 5, episode 50
Source: Brookings Institution
“Addressing ‘insider’ AI agents with Camille Stewart Gloster.” (10/05/26)
https://shows.acast.com/tech-tank/episodes/addressing-insider-ai-agents-with-camille-stewart-gloster
- EconTalk, 10/05/26
Source: EconLog
“Addiction, Faith, and the Limits of Willpower (with Meghan O’Gieblyn).” (10/05/26)
https://www.econtalk.org/addiction-faith-and-the-limits-of-willpower-with-meghan-ogieblyn/
- Ted Snider on The Scott Horton Show
Source: The Scott Horton Show
“Ted Snider on Why the War in Ukraine Isn’t Ending.” (10/05/26)
https://scotthorton.org/interviews/10-1-26-ted-snider-on-why-the-war-in-ukraine-isnt-ending/
- The Remnant with Jonah Goldberg, 10/05/26
Source: The Dispatch
“The Death of Homo Economicus | Interview: Nick Eberstadt.” (10/05/26)
https://thedispatch.com/podcast/remnant/the-death-of-homo-economicus-interview-nick-eberstadt/
- Reason Interview: Dan Osborn
Source: Reason
“Dan Osborn discusses breaking with both parties, opposing the Iran war, and how he plans to win over Trump voters.” (10/05/26)
https://reason.com/podcast/2026/10/05/can-nebraskas-dan-osborn-win-over-libertarians/
- Poliitco Playbook Audio Briefing, 10/05/26
Source: Politico
“Paxton’s campaign control.” (10/05/26)
- The Kyle Anzalone Show, 10/04/26
Source: Libertarian Institute
“Showdown at the UN as the US and Iran Escalate Tensions.” (10/04/26)
- Free Talk Live, 10/04/26
Source: Free Talk Live
“Michael in TX calls about the clown presidency and the greatness of FTL :: NCI engineered reality scoring system :: Sarah in NM calls about local politics :: tax talk with Bear Arms :: lawfultaxavoidance.com :: realsecondamendment.com :: Seattle to fix grocery prices :: vets use less opioids where cannabis is legal :: DOJ wants Iran’s bitcoin from oil sales :: David in NM calls to ‘control the show’ :: 2026-10-04 :: Hosts: Stu, Riley O’Bill, Bear Arms, Nobody.” (10/04/26)
- Antiwar News with Dave DeCamp, 10/04/26
Source: Antiwar.com
“Saudi-Backed Leader Announces New Yemen Offensive, IDF Kills Two Christian Women in Gaza, and More.” (10/04/26)
- Serious Trouble, 10/03/26
Source: Serious Trouble
“National controversy erupts over a rape non-prosecution at Cornell; Jeanine Pirro has various prosecutorial troubles; Sheri Mecklenburg leaves the Chicago US Attorney’s office with a bang.” (10/03/26)
- Free Talk Live, 10/03/26
Source: Free Talk Live
“Gypsy Rose and other cult killings :: Gypsy Rose’s ex fiancé Ken Urker found dead :: ‘If you let criminals vote it’s dangerous because there are a lot of people against Flock cameras’ Real quote by Sarah from NM :: lprmaps.com to check your state for license plate readers :: ICE to be turned around on the republicans by dems? :: The risk of super intelligence :: Executioners in TN literally had one job, says caller. Fewer people should trust the gov :: Government schools exist to make ignorant dependents :: Tom from NH calls to say squatting is okay if you can’t pay rent. Bonnie disagrees :: Houston has no zoning laws :: Michigan child abuse ring coming to light :: The profitable business of removing kids from their parents :: 2026-10-03 :: Hosts: Bonnie, Jay Noone, Chadd.” (10/03/26)
- The Good Fight, 10/03/26
Source: Yascha Mounk
“Galen Druke on the Midterms.” (10/03/26)
- The Fifth Column, 10/02/26
Source: The Fifth Column
“The Weave Within the Weave.” (10/02/26)
- Freakonomics Radio, 10/02/26
Source: Freakonomics
“Here’s Why Your Hamburger Just Got So Pricey.” (10/02/26)
https://freakonomics.com/podcast/heres-why-your-hamburger-just-got-so-pricey/
- Half the Answer, episode 106
Source: Liberal Currents
“Everything’s ‘National Security’ in Trump’s Washington.” (10/02/26)
- Ron Paul Liberty Report, 10/02/26
Source: Ron Paul Liberty Report
“Why Does America Keep Starving The People It Claims To Be ‘Liberating?'” (10/02/26)
- The Dishcast with Andrew Sullivan, 10/02/26
Source: The Weekly Dish
“Emily Eakin On What Postmodernism Wrought.” (10/02/26)
https://andrewsullivan.substack.com/p/emily-eakin-on-what-postmodernism
- System Update, 10/02/26
Source: Glenn Greenwald
“Weekly Q&A with Glenn Greenwald.” (10/02/26)
https://greenwald.substack.com/p/weekly-q-and-a-with-glenn-greenwald-2de